Alive
by HungerJackson
Summary: Five years after a car accident Annabeth wakes up from coma as a twenty-two-year-old woman. The first thing she sees as she comes back to the world is a pair of green eyes—her doctor's eyes. He has taken care of her since she arrived. But now that she's back she finds out that everything's changed, and suddenly she doesn't know if being alive again is good or not.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

**Beta Reader:**

_Chazaq_

**A/N:**

_I know what you must be thinking—if you already know me. 'Another story? Finish one and then publish another one'. I'm sorry, but I can't help it! If I don't write the ideas that come to my mind the inspiration goes away and I regret not writing it. So I'll just leave this here and hope you like it!_

* * *

"You're such a beautiful girl," a nearby voice says. I can tell it belongs to a boy. But I can't see anything; everything is dark. I can barely hear him along with a strange _beep, beep, beep_… "You don't seem like a bad person. I don't know why bad things always happen to good people. But you'll be alright. You'll get out of this and go back home with your family. They miss you a lot, you know? And your boyfriend must miss you, too. I'd guess you have a boyfriend, right? Because you're just too beautiful to not have one. Shit! I'm crazy. Why am I asking you things as though you could answer? Perhaps I'm hopeful you will do it and you'll wake up."

The boy sighs―I can hear him do it, but the sound is covered instantly by another; the sound of a nearby door opening.

"Here again, Perseus?" a second voice says, and the anger is evident. Who is Perseus? He must be the boy I hear talking. But who is the second person? "How do you expect to be a doctor one day if you keep abandoning your duties to talk with her? She _can't_ hear you. And she _can't_ answer you. She probably won't be hearing anything again. Ever. Getting out of a coma isn't easy."

"Her parents and my parents are best friends," says Perseus. "They asked me to check on her whenever I have an opportunity to do it, because I work here."

"Okay," says the second voice after a long pause. "I will let you check on this patient whenever you want as long as you've finished your duties. And right now you haven't. Dr. Farrell asked me to tell you that Mr. Johnson's body needs to be washed, and you've got to take care of that, okay? When you finish, your turn will be over, and _then_ you can check on her. Understood?"

"Clearly, doctor. I'll take care of Mr. Johnson right away," Perseus says. After a big silence I can hear the click of the door being closed.

"Ugh, I hate having to wash that old man. He's very nice and I like him, but not without clothes. And I'm being crazy again, because I'm talking to you and you can't even answer. I'll be back in an hour or two. Uh, what's your name? I forgot it. Let's see. Your name's Annabeth. I'll be back, Annabeth."

The door opens once more, and I can hear it being closed again. Everything remains dark, and the only sound is _beep, beep, beep_…―which is starting to annoy me.

My mind can't think clearly. There's something strange going on, that's obvious, but my desire to know what it is starts vanishing at the same time as the beep. It's as though the annoying sound were miles and miles away from me now, and then, I can no longer hear anything.

**. . .**

"Dr. Jackson, I don't know what the point is of keeping this patient alive," a strange voice says. "She's been here for a time now, and there haven't been any good results. Why don't we just unplug her and let her die naturally? She doesn't deserve to be suffering like this."

"Her parents asked me to keep her alive, Dr. Farrell, before…well you know what happened," a familiar voice says. "They've got hope that she can wake up one day. And you know what? I have hope, too. I don't know why you care. I'm using my own money to pay for her treatment, not the hospital's."

"I care because she might never wake up again, and she doesn't deserve to be suffering like this! You're only chaining her to this world when it's her time to go. You're wasting your money in vain."

"Believe what you want. I'm paying for her treatment; I'll do what _I_ please. Now, I need to ask you to leave this room. You're disturbing my patient's peace."

"She's not having peace until you let her go! Stop being in love with a person that's dead alive!"

I hear the door slam closed.

There is silence in the place, and a familiar _beep, beep, beep…_ can be heard. I can hear someone walking, getting closer to me.

"No one believes in you," the familiar voice says. "But I do. I believe that you're strong and that you're fighting to come back to the world. You're doing it, right?" Silence. And I can hear the person sigh. "Three years have passed and I still talk to you expecting to hear an answer. I know that you'll soon give me a signal that you're alive. Now that I'm a doctor and not a simple nurse I'll make sure that you're okay. Alright? You know, you're as beautiful as the first day I saw you here and..."

The voice continues talking, but I can barely hear it now. It's as though it's far from me. Soon, everything becomes silent.

**. . .**

"They want to unplug you, you know," a strange―but familiar at the same time―voice says. "But I won't let them. I keep my promises, and I'll keep you alive. Besides, I've got hope that you'll wake up one day. You know, it wouldn't be bad to give us a signal that you're alive. Like… Right now! Surprise everyone. Make them fall off their seats by waking up. Come on. Show us how strong you are. Make everyone see how wrong they are."

I can't see anything! Just darkness. What is this person talking about? I struggle to move, but it's as though I didn't have arms…―I _do_ have arms right? _Right?!_

Then I see a little light spot, which becomes bigger and bigger, until I'm blinded by it.

Now everything's too shiny. It takes me a minute to adjust my eyes, and the first thing I see is a pair of green orbs staring back at me.

The place surrounding me is a squared room. There are plugs everywhere, and there is a machine beside me doing a familiar and annoying beeping sound. Blue covers are coating my body, and it seems that I'm wearing a turquoise-colored robe.

"Holy shit―" the owner of the green eyes says, jumping backwards and falling on his butt. His back hits a nearby metallic table, causing a tray to fall from it and onto his head.

I would laugh, but my mouth feels as though it's been sewed shut. What's going on here? Clearly, this is a hospital, but what's happening? Then, it hits me. I can remember going to the movies with my best friend Thalia. She drives like a madman. I remember that she lost control, and, and I remember the car spinning. Then…then…everything's blurry afterwards. I don't remember anything at all after that.

The man on the floor takes off the tray from over his head and comes to stand beside my bed. His eyes are wide open, and I can see how beautiful his green eyes are. He's really tall, with a sculptured body, and he's wearing a white coat over a marine-blue t-shirt. I can see his dark hair and his freshly shaved chin.

Despite I'm only seventeen and that I've never been very interested in guys, I can't help admitting that this man, older than me, is good looking. But that doesn't answer my question! What's going _on_ here?

"Your pupils look normal, which means that this is not an involuntary movement and you're actually awake!" The man beams at me, but I don't know what he's talking about. "I knew you were strong! You listened to me! You fought the coma!"

The coma? I was in coma? I try to move my arms again, but nothing happens. I can only hear myself grunting as I struggle to do it.

"Don't move. You'll get tired, and you need to rest," the man says, walking to the end of the bed and taking a clipboard from it. He stares at it intently and then his stare returns to me. "I need to ask you some questions to make sure that your mind is working properly and you don't have amnesia or whatnot. I see that you can blink, so since you can't talk, you'll blink. One blink means yes, and two mean no. Okay?"

I blink once, and suddenly start feeling my eyelids heavy. They start joining slowly, until I'm back in the darkness and everything's becoming silent…

"Don't close your eyes!" the man's voice startles me, and I open my eyes instantly. "You've fought against the coma very hard. Don't let it win! Try to remain awake so your systems start working again. Understand?"

Once again, I blink, but this time I try to remain awake. It's hard to keep my eyes open. Remaining awake is exhausting. _Don't close your eyes. Don't._

"Okay. So let's see what you remember. Is your name Annabeth Evans?" Annabeth Evans? Yes, it is. Wait. No it isn't. I blink twice, and he smiles. "Annabeth Chase?" I blink once. "Good, you know who you are. Do you remember the accident that brought you here?" I blink once, and suddenly I feel worried about Thalia. Is she in coma, too? "How old are you? One?" I blink twice. He continues reciting numbers, until he reaches the number seventeen. I blink once. His lips are pursed and he stares at the clipboard again. "Okay, that's right. Are your parents Athena and Frederick Chase?" I blink once and start feeling a strange sadness inside. For how long have I been here? I hope I haven't been here long; hopefully less than a year. Has anyone missed me?

"Okay, it seems that your mind is alright. You don't have amnesia. Has someone ever told you that you're really beautiful?" He smiles, and I blink twice, feeling embarrassed. "Well, you are. Very much so in fact." A wide grin spreads on his face. "Great! You're blushing. Your systems are working again." If I wasn't blushing already I would probably turn red.

The man stares at the clipboard once more and puts it back in its place. His green eyes stare back at me, and he starts walking in my direction slowly, placing his hands in the pockets of his coat.

"Well, it's time to bring you up to date." He sits beside me on the bed and takes my hand, though I don't feel a thing. "Annabeth, I want you to take everything easy. You'll start recovering slowly. You've done what not many people can do. You just woke up from the coma after five years. Understand?" Oh. God. I've been in coma for _five_ years? Thinking it's a joke, I see a calendar hanging on the wall. It's true, five years have passed while I was in coma. I blink once. "My name is Perseus Jackson. I'm your doctor and the son of your parents' best friends. I don't think you remember me. We met once as little kids." He grins.

I try to move again, but my body remains motionless on the bed as a sweat drop glides across my temple.

"I told you to relax, Annabeth." The Perseus says. "If you remain as strong as you were while fighting the coma I suspect you'll be able to talk a little by tomorrow. Then, we'll start helping you to recover the mobility of your body. While you recover and eat again you'll start changing until you get the appearance of a twenty-two-year-old woman. That's what you are now; you're twenty-two. Okay?"

I blink once, feeling tired and surprised. I'm twenty-two already, and I wasn't able to enjoy my birthdays with my parents like we used to do before the accident. I didn't get to graduate from high-school. There are a lot of things I missed.

"Great." He grins. "I'll go and tell everyone that you're awake. They'll have to come here and apologize for thinking that having you alive was a waste of equipment and time. Try to remain awake, okay? Don't let the coma defeat you." I blink twice, and he smiles, reaching to touch my chin―again, I don't feel anything. "I'll be back, beautiful. It's good to see that you're alive again."

And with a grin, he leaves, making me feel embarrassed with his compliment.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

**Beta Reader:**

_Chazaq_

**A/N:**

_Hello everyone! Yeah, I am alive. And I'm really, REALLY sorry for not updating in about—how much? I don't know. But I've been busy. The odds haven't been in my favor. Projects. A lot of things. And when everything was over I wasn't lucky. I started feeling pain somewhere inside my body and got a surgery last Saturday. But...I'm back! Besides, the chapter was being beta-ed. And I hope you like it as much as I and my beta liked it :). If you're following my other story, 'Complicated', I haven't updated 'cause my beta hasn't returned the chapter edited. But as long as it's ready I'll update! I'm really sorry again! But here. Read the chapter._

* * *

That night―or at least I think it _is_ night; it's dark outside the hospital―I don't sleep at all. I did that for five years while in a coma; that's the least thing I need. Now it's time to recover all that time lost. Besides, it scares me that my eyes don't open again if I close them.

Dr. Perseus doesn't come back as he promised, but it doesn't matter. With no one here I'm able to do whatever I please. So while I'm alone, dealing with a growling stomach that's begging for some food, I give mental orders to my lips. _Come on. Move. Move._

After an hour or so my lips manage to separate slightly from each other, and sweat drops are falling from my temples to my cheeks. Dr. Perseus's words come back to my mind after noticing how tired I am. _Annabeth, I want you to take everything easy._ The image of his stunning green orbs appears behind my eyes, looking worried and telling me to relax. But I don't listen to him. Instead, I continue ordering my lips to move. There's no time to relax when you've spent five years lying on a bed. I could be studying to be an architect right now…but I'm not.

_Come on. Move. Move._

I'm not sure how many minutes passed. It could have been hours, but after a while I can move my lips as though they never stopped working. As a consequence of pushing myself a lot though, my eyelids are feeling heavy again. They just want to close and drag me to a peaceful sleep, but I don't let them. _Don't close your eyes_. _Don't_.

"M-my name is Annabeth," I say, trying to distract myself from my exhaustion. "I-I'm seventeen―I mean, twenty-two years old. M-my mother's name is Athena, and my father's is Frederick. My best friend is Thalia. I-I don't know what's become of her. A-and I do not blame her for what happened."

An hour more passes, I think, and my lips are immobile again. Exhaustion is winning. My eyes start closing slowly, and my desire to sleep starts growing. _Don't sleep, Annabeth_! It's hard to listen to my own thoughts. Even the annoying, shrill beeping sound is soothing now.

Then, I hear voices. That wakes me up again.

"I'm telling you, Dr. Farrell." If I'm not wrong that's Dr. Perseus's voice. "She's strong. She fought the coma. I saw her wake up from it. And she even answered to my questions despite how much she wanted to close her eyes again."

"She talked to you?" another voice asks.

"Well, she blinked, actually, but―"

"Then it could've been an involuntary movement. It happens all times."

"No, I checked on her pupils. They were normal again. They didn't look at all like before. Besides, I told her to blink once if the answer was yes and twice if the answer was no. And she did as I instructed."

"You seem to have a lot of faith on this patient."

"Why shouldn't I?"

"Okay, let's check on your patient."

Footsteps become audible, getting closer to the room. Suddenly, an idea appears in my mind. Fighting the exhaustion, I close my eyes and try to remain conscious. _Don't_ _go to sleep_.

The door of the room is opened, and there is a big silence afterwards. "See?" the second voice asks after a while. "It was _only_ an involuntary movement. Maybe you thought she was answering you, but she wasn't. I'm telling you this again; stop being in love with someone who's dead alive."

Dr. Perseus sighs. "I told her to try to remain awake."

_Now_, I think, and suddenly open my eyes to show what I've been practicing during the past few hours. "H-hello, doctor," I say, and both doctors standing at the entrance turn their stares to me. I wink at Dr. Perseus, who grins instantly. The other one―Dr. Farrell, I reckon―is too shocked to notice that it was my plan to surprise him.

"S-s-she's awake," says Dr. Farrell, opening his eyes wide. "It's a miracle. Holy god, I must go back to tell everyone about this."

"Ahem." Dr. Perseus clears his throat. "Don't you think, Elliot, that _someone_ deserves an apology? What were you saying on our way here?"

Dr. Farrell turns red, clearing his throat. "My apologies," is all he says before turning on his heels and leaving the place.

"That was brilliant!" Dr. Perseus says, walking towards me. "Strong, beautiful _and_ smart. Is there something you're not?" He grins. "I expected you to talk by today in the afternoon. I didn't expect you to do it _so_ soon. You're stronger that what I thought."

"I-I try to be," I say. "It still costs me a little b-bit to talk, but I g-guess I'll soon be able to talk without problems. D-dr. Perseus―"

"Call me Percy."

"Okay. P-Percy, I was wondering if we could start working on my body. I-I would like to regain the mobility of it as soon as possible. I've m-missed a lot of time already and can't continue wasting it."

Percy sits beside me, staring at me intently. I guess he's thinking if he should accept or not. Finally, he says, "Okay. We'll start working. But you have to take everything slow, Annabeth. It will take you some time to recover completely."

"Y-yeah, I know. B-but the sooner we begin, the sooner I can recover completely."

"Alright, let's start right now. But we'll just work a little. You already worked a lot if you can talk again." He takes his white coat off and places it on a nearby couch. Then, he comes back to me and grabs my arm gently―again I don't feel his touch at all.

His hands start pushing my arm, flexing it. Then, he pulls it, stretching it. The process is repeated several times, then he does the same with every finger, and then with my wrist. After he's done with my left arm he walks to the right side of the bed and starts working with my right arm.

"There. It's enough for today," he says.

My lips part slightly as I inhale deeply and try to lift both arms. It's useless. Nothing happens. Again, I can only hear myself grunting.

"Hey, well done!" Percy beams at me, and I realize that my arms are just one centimeter above the mattress. Then, they fall heavily and remain motionless. New sweat start gliding across my skin. "I said it already; you're stronger than what I thought."

Percy is grinning at me, and I would do it too, but I only manage to smile. "H-has someone ever told you that you have a beautiful smile?"

His eyes open wide, and I start to regret saying that. The beeping sound is more likable now that there's silence. Tension builds between both, and it's impossible to escape. I can't move, after all.

After a minute, while we stare at each other, he smiles and blinks twice. "We doctors never receive compliments. Patients don't tend make them. Why would they care about us? I mean, they've got to worry about their problems, so they don't waste their time staring at us."

Again, feeling relieved, I try to grin, but my mouth only manages a little smile. "W-well, it's time for someone to notice doctors. Y-you've got one beautiful smile." He gives me a shy smile, and his skin turns red, all the way to his arms. "G-great. You're b-blushing. Y-your systems are working."

"I see that your sense of humor is working again, too." He raises an eyebrow at me.

"J-just a little." We stop talking, and I stare at him and his green eyes, trying to remember if I've seen him before. He said that we met as little kids, but I don't remember meeting anyone like him. "D-do you remember when we met?"

"Oh, yes. I'll never forget that day. It was humiliating. What I did, I mean." He grins.

"How come I don't remember anything about you?"

"Hey, you talked without stuttering!" He beams again, as though I were a dog being trained. "You don't remember anything because you still didn't think back then."

"We don't have the same age?" It hits me, then. "Oh, right. You can't be a doctor at my age. Then how old are you?"

"I'm five years older―well, four and eleven months older. I'm twenty-seven." Another grin spreads across his face, splitting it in two. "I remember being a four-year-old kid when I met you. My parents wanted to take me somewhere―a party, to be exact. Less than a month was left for August eighteenth, so I thought it was a surprise party for my fifth birthday. When we arrived I expected gifts and people shouting, 'Surprise!' But everyone was distracted, surrounding a dark-haired woman―your mother.

"I got angry and sat far away from everyone. When everyone left your mother alone I got near and saw that they were staring at a new-born baby―you. And it wasn't a party for me. It was a 'Welcome Home' party for you. It's curious that we tend to remember only what we want to forget―humiliating situations, for example."

"Oh, that _is_ humiliating." I force myself to grin and manage to do it, but my exhaustion increases. "Talking about my mother; when are my parents coming to visit me? Do they know that I woke up already?"

In the little time I know Percy I've only seen him smile, but now he turns serious. "Your parents?" he asks. "No, they don't know. I'll, uh, call them later." He smiles, but it doesn't touch his eyes.

"What's wrong?" I ask. "There _is_ something wrong, right?"

"N-no, there isn't," he replies.

"You're stuttering," I say, anger bubbling inside me. "You're moving your hands too much. You're not a good liar. There's something wrong with my parents, right? What is it? Are they not it the city? They abandoned me here?" Silence fills the place. Then, a memory comes to my mind. It's Percy's voice, saying something. _Her parents asked me to keep her alive, Dr. Farrell, before... you know what happened. I'm using my own money to pay for her treatment, not the hospitals._ I don't know when I heard that, but if I had something in my stomach I would probably throw up.

"M-my parents are alright, aren't they?" Tears start forming behind my eyes, wanting to come out, but I resist the urge to cry. Maybe I'm just imagining everything.

Percy comes closer to me and takes my hand. I can feel his touch slightly, but I don't care. I stare into his eyes, waiting for an answer. "Annabeth," he says. "As I said before, you've got to take everything easy, okay?"

"J-just tell me what's wrong." I want to shout, but exhaustion is winning me.

"Do you―do you really want to know right _now_?"

_For God's sake. _"Y-yes!" without thinking, I manage to shout.

He flinches just a bit, and then turns his stare to his hand holding mine. "They―they passed away two years ago, Annabeth. I've been taking care of you alone, like I promised your parents I would do."

The tears behind my eyes can't be controlled. They start pouring down my cheeks, to my chin and down my neck. If they're gone what am I doing here? What's the point of being _alive_? They were my only family, and they're gone. I lost five years of my life. My studies won't get me a good job, and without money I can't try to recover the years lost. What's the point of living like _that_?

"Your parents caused their own death," Percy says with a low volume.

"W-what?" I ask.

"Yes―or at least that's what I believe. I believe that when you're about to travel you've got to leave something to do at home. I mean; you shouldn't prepare everything in case you don't come back, because that would be saying that you're ready to die.

"It was a stormy day when your parents were going to travel. They prepared everything in case they didn't come back, because the storm was one of the worst ever seen. They talked to me and asked me to take care of you if something happened. Later that day, it was on the news that an airplane was missing―it was the one that your parents had taken."

His stare meets mine, and I see that his eyes are shinier than before. They're brimming with tears, just like mine.

"My parents were with them," he says. "They, too, believed that they weren't coming back. I remember that my mother's last words to me were, 'We're so proud of you.' I told them that they didn't have to worry. That they would come back. And…and they didn't."

Before tears starts streaming down his cheeks he grabs the end of his t-shirt and cleans his eyes, revealing part of his bare chest. But I'm more distracted watching his face than his sculptured body.

He hasn't given up, and he also lost his parents. And here I am, thinking that being alive isn't worth without them. I'm pathetic. "I'm sorry," I say.

"Yeah," he replies, fixing his shirt and giving me a smile. "I'm sorry about your parents, too. I wish you had been with me in the ceremony that was made to the passengers." He takes a deep breath and smiles even more. "But, well, that's in the past. Life goes on. _We_ are alive. And I'm keeping my promise. I will protect you with my life if it's needed. That's what your parents wanted."

I'm not sure if I manage to nod, but I at least try. "Do you mind leaving me alone for a bit? I would like some time to think."

He nods and squeezes my hand, but I barely feel it. After the door closes, I'm left alone and in silence―except for the _beep_. Tears begin to stream again as I think what to say.

"If you wanted to keep me alive it's for something," I mutter, hoping that my parents can hear me. "I promise I'll live, and I will make you proud. This was just a bump in the road, but I'll overcome it. I promise."

As the minutes pass my exhaustion starts dragging me to the darkness, but I try to resist. _Don't close your eyes; you might never wake up_. It's difficult to remain awake. I've worked too much today.

Soon, not even the beeping sound is audible, and I close my eyes, wishing that they open again after a while.


End file.
